H.R. 9285

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9285 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9285

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a 
Heat Illness AI Surveillance and Response Program, and for other 
purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 11, 2026

Mr. Lawler (for himself and Mr. Stanton) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a 
Heat Illness AI Surveillance and Response Program, and for other 
purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Heat Emergency Assessment and 
Tracking using AI Act'' or the ``HEAT AI Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) heat-related deaths and illnesses are significantly 
under reported due to--
(A) the limitations of coding under the 
International Classification of Diseases; and
(B) inconsistent documentation by medical 
practitioners; and
(2) artificial intelligence, including large language 
models, can analyze unstructured clinical data and local 
weather information to identify likely heat-related cases 
missed by current systems.

SEC. 3. STUDY ON HEAT-RELATED ILLNESS.

Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary shall conduct a study on the incidence of heat-related 
illness and death in the United States, including coordinating with 
State departments of health and vital statistics to determine how many 
deaths in the United States may be attributable to heat-related illness 
as a primary, secondary, or tertiary cause of death.

SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM.

(a) In General.--The Secretary shall carry out a program under 
which the Secretary will make grants to not fewer than 3, and not more 
than 5, eligible entities. Such program shall be known as the ``Heat 
Illness AI Surveillance and Response Program''.
(b) Applications.--
(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
the program, an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary 
an application in such form and manner, and containing such 
information, as the Secretary may require.
(2) Contents.--An application of an eligible entity 
referred to in paragraph (1) shall contain, at a minimum--
(A) an implementation plan developed by the 
eligible entity to carry out activities specified in 
subsection (c);
(B) an identification of the partners the eligible 
entity will work with to develop or use an AI tool 
described in subsection (c);
(C) if such AI tool has been previously developed, 
an identification of the AI tool; and
(D) a description of the steps the applicant will 
take to ensure that use of an AI tool described in 
subsection (c) by the applicant is in compliance with 
applicable Federal and State privacy laws.
(c) Use of Grants.--An eligible entity that receives a grant under 
the program shall use the amounts of the grant--
(1) to develop and test AI tools that--
(A) are capable of analyzing medical records, death 
certificates, and coroner reports for indications of 
heat-related illness (including if heat-related illness 
was a primary, secondary, or tertiary cause of death); 
and
(B) integrate localized weather data and 
occupational information to improve accuracy;
(2) to implement such AI tools for the purpose of 
conducting surveillance of heat-related deaths and illnesses;
(3) to develop heat response protocols to reduce and 
prevent heat-related illness and death;
(4) to conduct clinician training on the identification, 
diagnosis, and management of heat-related illness; and
(5) to conduct community outreach to increase awareness of 
heat-related illness symptoms, risk factors, and available 
prevention and treatment resources to develop heat response 
protocols.
(d) Selection of Grant Recipients.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall award grants to 
eligible entities under the program on a competitive basis.
(2) Criteria.--In awarding such grants, the Secretary 
select eligible entities that represent diverse climates and 
populations and shall include--
(A) at least one urban community; and
(B) at least one rural community.
(e) Consultation.--In carrying out the program, the Secretary shall 
consult with--
(1) medicolegal death investigation professionals of the 
Department of Justice;
(2) regional, State, and local departments of health; and
(3) relevant stakeholders, including utility companies.
(f) Privacy and Ethics.--In carrying out the program, the Secretary 
shall--
(1) establish requirements to ensure compliance with 
regulations promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability 
and Accountability Act of 1996 (commonly known as ``HIPAA''; 
Public Law 104-191) and other applicable Federal privacy laws 
and regulations; and
(2) establish an AI advisory board to ensure transparency, 
community input, fairness, accuracy, and equitable performance 
of AI models across demographic and geographic populations.
(g) Reports to Congress.--
(1) Progress reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter until the 
date of submission of the final report under paragraph (2), the 
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report containing a 
description of--
(A) the progress made by the Secretary in 
establishing and implementing the program;
(B) the accuracy of data collected under the 
program relating to heat-related deaths and illnesses; 
and
(C) public health outcomes, including trends in 
heat-related morbidity and mortality and the 
effectiveness of AI-enables surveillance and response 
interventions.
(2) Final report.--Not later than September 30, 2031, the 
Secretary shall submit to Congress a final report containing--
(A) an evaluation of the overall effectiveness of 
the program; and
(B) a description of the costs and benefits of 
individual activities carried out under the program.
(h) Issuance of National Guidelines.--Not later than 2 years after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention shall issue national guidelines to 
standardize documentation and reporting of heat-related illnesses and 
deaths, including improved use of external cause codes used under the 
International Classification of Diseases. Such guidelines may be issued 
at such time as determined appropriate by the Director, regardless of 
the date upon which the program under this Act concludes.
(i) Recommendations.--Not later than September 30, 2031, the 
Secretary shall--
(1) issue recommendations based on the results of the 
program; and
(2) using such recommendations, advise Federal department 
and agencies on broadly deploying AI technologies for the 
purpose of tracking heat-related deaths nationwide, including 
best practices for the design, acquisition, development, 
modernization, use, operation, sharing, risk management, 
auditing, and performance of such technologies for such 
purpose.
(j) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) AI.--The term ``AI'' refers to artificial intelligence.
(2) AI tool.--The term ``AI tool'' means a software 
application that uses AI.
(3) Artificial intelligence.--The term ``artificial 
intelligence'' has the meaning given such term in section 5002 
of the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 
(15 U.S.C. 9401).
(4) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a 
public or private entity (including a hospital system, academic 
medical center, State or local health department, or qualified 
research institution) that has demonstrated capacity to carry 
out activities under the program, as determined by the 
Secretary.
(5) Program.--The term ``program'' means the Heat Illness 
AI Surveillance and Response Program referred to in subsection 
(a).
(6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of 
the National Institutes of Health and the Director of the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(k) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $25,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2027 through 2031.
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